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Is the Ku Klux Klan operating in southern Qld?
Mentions: Robert Rowlingson Publication: ABC News (Australia) Date: 14 May 2010 (updated 17 May 2010) Author: Sam Burgess Original: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-05-14/is-the-ku-klux-klan-operating-in-southern-qld/436140 ---- Revelations about a Queensland teacher's involvement in the Ku Klux Klan have added an unexpected twist to a sordid murder tale. Former maths and physics teacher, Graeme Fredrick McNeil, 46, was yesterday jailed for eight years for being an accessory after the fact to the murder of Robert Rowlingson, 19, at Pittsworth on Queensland's Darling Downs. The 2007 murder shocked the local community. The fact Mr Rowlingson's then 16-year-old brother Anthony would later admit to it further electrified feelings. McNeil's crime was to help Anthony Rowlingson dispose of his brother's body. In a statement tendered to Justice Philippides, but not read out to the open court, McNeil admitted to police that he was an Imperial Kludd or a Supreme Chaplain. The ABC understands no formal mention was made of McNeil's role in the Ku Klux Klan to protect him in jail and because it had little relevance to the case. But his cover was blown in a newspaper article by respected Queensland journalist Tony Koch. The fact such a high-ranking official could live on the state's Darling Downs and be in such a respected position of authority, has brought the reach of the previously secretive Klan out into the open. But it does not surprise one Toowoomba anti-racism campaigner, Stephen Hagan, who says although their membership is tiny, Ku Klux Klan activity has occurred in the area. "I've certainly had letters from them - I've had them drive past my house, calling out names," Mr Hagan said, the man who campaigned to have the word 'n***er' (censored to comply with Fandom's terms of use) removed from a Toowoomba grandstand. "I've had reports from other people who've actually seen them driving around in cars with white outfits on. "I've had some men who've actually been to farmhouse gatherings dressed in their white robes, purple robes." Mr Hagan says he is concerned groups like the Ku Klux Klan could persuade troubled white youths to join. "There's a lot of vulnerable, impressionable white youths out there nowadays who are very angry," he said. "They may have had instances at school where they're not exactly the biggest kids, and you've got a lot of Aboriginal and Tongan and Fijian footballers around the place who are obviously more physical than these guys and maybe they're frustrated. "Maybe they're listening to the grandparents who are talking about how it was in the past when blacks really had no rights ... maybe they're trying to recreate the era of yesteryear where racism flourished." Meanwhile, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh says she will be asking Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson to liaise with Education Queensland to weed out any racist activity in schools. "To make sure that if we know anything about these groups we can make sure they have no place in our schools," she said. McNeil will be eligible for parole in three years. Category:ABC News (Australia) Category:May 2010